Saturday, June 30, 2012

The San Antonio Express-News had a couple of stories on Alamo Beer Company's plans to build a brewery of its own on San Antonio's east side (see yesterday's post for a KSAT-TV story).

This link goes to SAE-N's report on the Planning Commission's approval of the plan, sending it to the City Council; this link goes to the paper's Downtown Blog, where Benjamin Olivo opines that the brewery will be good for the neighborhood.

AUSTIN, TX JUNE 28, 2012 - Those soggy bastards that brought you Austin Beer Guide Spring 2012, Winter 2011, Fall 2011, Summer 2011, and Spring 2011 are at it again, and this time it's Summer 2012!

With just barley breaking a sweat, these palate pirates have created what they believe to be the BEST GUIDE YET. In this action packed issue, our heros venture into the dark depths of Austin's dive bar culture, look into the future of packaged beer, agitate brewers for their wheat beer opinions, traverse the best and worst drinking holes of New Braunfels, spend some time with the brains and brawn behind Rogness Brewing, and check in on the mind of award winning brewer, Brian "Swifty" Peters.

In light of this amazing feat, Austin Beer Guide invites their dear readers to celebrate in the release, nay birth, of the beautiful Summer 2012 issue with an abundance of beer, casked, kegged, and canned, on the patio of Billy's on Burnet, for what some have deemed "PATIO-BEER-MAGEDON!"

On the evening of June 28th, at 7pm, Billy's will turn their patio and side parking lot into a spectacle of rare and special beers that may only be remotely imagined as the ancient Roman Colosseum, but with casks, kegs, and cans. Austin Beerworks will be debuting their Summer seasonal berliner weisse Eisenhorn, Hops & Grain are bringing out a keg of their Barelywine, a first of the Volumes of Oak series, Jester King will have a cask of their Drinkin' the Sunbelt Collaborationbeer with Danish Gyspsy brewer Mikkeller, and Live Oak are bringing a cask so rare and mysterious,not even the Austin Beer Guide know what it will contain!

And to show their readers how dear they are, any of these beers purchased will come with a collectible Austin Beer Guide #Brewmor Glass or BeerTownAustin 'Stache Glass. And that's not all! Those generous assholes have another freebie for their dear readers so radical it's not fit for print.

Patio-beer-magedon- Austin Beerworks, Hops & Grain, Jester King, and Live Oak will be pouring some pretty special casks and kegs on the patio. There will also be a nice selection of some of Texas’ finest beer in cans available. Purchase tokens inside, or pay cash outside, enjoy.

Summer Reading List- Be the first of your friends to get yr mits on the new guide. Awesome cover by Michael Sieben, new features, some swear words, lots of pictures, and of course, that great guide content you’ve come to rely on.

Surprises- yeah, we’ve got more up our collective sleeves than this. Come next Thursday night to Billy’s to find out. Here’s a hint- it’s a hot way to keep it cool.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Austin, Texas--After a long and tenacious pursuit of her famous family name, Christine Celis has successfully brought the Celis Beer brand back into the family fold. Christine, daughter of the world-renowned Belgian brewer, Pierre Celis, will be bringing Celis Beer and the brewery back to Austin, Texas.

“It has been my personal dream and passion to carry on my father’s legacy. After his death last year, we stepped up the intensity of our plans for a new brewery and re-acquiring the family name was the one thing we really needed to begin moving forward. Now that we have the right to brew my Dad’s famous recipes under our own name once again, nothing can stop me from making that a reality,” says Christine.

Established in 1966 in Hoegaarden, Belgium, Pierre Celis revived lost recipes for wheat beer from the Middle Ages. In the late 1970’s, Celis exported his beer, and for the first time, introduced Americans to Belgian wheat beer. Pierre decided he wanted to move to America and created a new, state of the art brewery in Austin in 1992. Over the next several years Celis introduced clean, crisp and high quality Belgian brews which quickly attracted national attention. “Celis was the first craft beer founded in Austin and one of the most influential breweries in the country at that time. Pierre Celis not only introduced the White style Belgian Beer you see everywhere today, but also a whole portfolio of beers that were new to the American market. Pierre Celis encouraged, mentored, and befriended many successful craft brewers around the country, and personally made me a Belgophile,” claims Pete Slosberg, Founder/Creator of Pete’s Wicked Ale. “He helped turn the image of Belgium from a small country to THE beer mecca in the world.”

“We are receiving a phenomenal show of support from the brewing community. I have been blown away by the wishes for success and the passion expressed for my father’s achievements and our unique brewing style. When I called my mother in Belgium to share the news, she went completely silent and I realized she was overcome with emotion,” says Christine.

Christine Celis and her business partner Sushil Tyagi are in discussions with financial investors about building a specialized brewery in Austin; although, they will utilize an existing brewing facility now to bring the new Celis to the market as soon as possible. Christine says, “We have my Dad’s original family recipes, famous Belgian brewers who worked for us over many years, and a robust distribution network. If fans would like to keep up with our progress, they can go to http://www.facebook.com/CelisBrewery or follow us on twitter@CelisBrewery. All we need to do now is start making the beer!”